You can convert a Chapter 7 bankruptcy to Chapter 13 in most situations. This option exists specifically to give you flexibility if your circumstances change. It also helps if Chapter 7 turns out not to be the right fit for your situation. A DuPage County bankruptcy lawyer can help you understand whether converting your case is the right move.
If you contact The McCormick Law Firm, LLC, you’ll work directly with Attorney Eron McCormick. He takes a genuine guy-next-door approach to explaining your options in a way that actually makes sense.
Why Would Someone Want to Convert From Chapter
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What Is an Irrevocable Trust, and How Does It Work?
An irrevocable trust is a legal arrangement where you transfer ownership of your assets into a trust that generally cannot be changed or taken back once it is set up. It’s designed to be permanent. That permanence is actually what makes it powerful. If you are considering an irrevocable trust as part of your estate plan in 2026, the Waukegan, IL estate planning lawyers at Newland & Newland, LLP can help you understand whether it is the right tool for your situation.
How Is an Irrevocable Trust Different From a Revocable Trust?
The key difference between an irrevocable trust and
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Selling Without a Realtor Does Not Mean Selling Without a Process
Selling a home without a real estate agent can be a reasonable choice in the right circumstances.
Some homeowners already have a potential buyer. Others are comfortable marketing the property, arranging showings, and negotiating directly. Some simply want to reduce the commissions and other costs associated with a traditional listing.
These can all be legitimate reasons to consider a for-sale-by-owner, or FSBO, transaction.
However, removing the listing agent does not remove the work involved in selling a home. It changes who is responsible for performing that work.
Before deciding to sell without a realtor, homeowners should understand the responsibilities they
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What Is Earnest Money, and Can You Get It Back?
Earnest money is a deposit a buyer pays when they make an offer on a home to show the seller they are serious about the purchase. It is not a fee that disappears. It goes toward the purchase price at closing. But if the deal falls apart, what happens to that money depends on why the transaction did not go through and what the purchase contract says. In some situations, you can get it back. In others, you cannot.
If you are buying or selling a home in 2026 and have questions about earnest money, a DuPage County real estate
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FSBO Sellers: The Buyer’s Attorney Is Not There to Protect You
When selling a home privately, one of the most common mistakes a seller can make is assuming that they are protected because “there is already an attorney involved.”
That sounds reassuring.
It should not be.
If the attorney represents the buyer, then the attorney’s job is to protect the buyer. Not the seller.
This does not mean the buyer’s attorney is doing anything wrong. Quite the opposite. A good buyer’s attorney should be looking out for the buyer’s interests. That is the purpose of representation.
But sellers, especially FSBO sellers, need to understand the difference between an attorney being involved
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FSBO Sellers: Don’t Argue About the Buyer’s Broker Fee. Do the Math.
A seller recently came to me with a concern I expect to hear more often:
“I don’t want to pay the buyer’s broker.”
That reaction makes sense.
If you are selling your home FSBO or through a private sale, one of the main reasons is usually to control costs. You may not want to pay a listing broker. You may not want to pay a buyer’s broker. You may feel like the whole point of selling privately is to avoid giving away part of the deal in commission.
Fair enough.
But sellers need to be careful. A request for buyer-broker
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FSBO Sellers: Who Wrote the Contract Matters
Selling your home without a realtor can feel empowering. You find the buyer. You agree on a price. Everyone seems ready to move forward.
Then someone sends over a contract.
That is the moment many FSBO sellers move too quickly.
In a private sale, the buyer, the buyer’s agent, or the buyer’s attorney may provide the purchase contract. That does not automatically mean the contract is unfair. But it does mean the seller should stop and ask a basic question:
Does this contract protect me, or does it mostly protect the buyer?
The contract is not just paperwork. It is
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What Happens if a Home Inspection Reveals Major Problems?
A home inspection is one of the most important protections you have when buying a home, and knowing what to do with the results can make a big difference in how things turn out. If an inspection has revealed serious issues in 2026 and you are not sure what to do next, the Libertyville real estate lawyers at Newland & Newland, LLP can help you understand your options and protect yourself.
What Is a Home Inspection Contingency?
A home inspection contingency is a clause in your purchase contract that gives you the right to have the home professionally inspected
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What Will Happen if I Die Without a Will in Illinois?
If you die without a will in Illinois, you lose the opportunity to direct what happens to your belongings, your money, even your children. Illinois has a fixed set of rules that takes over when someone passes away without leaving written instructions. Those rules do not know your story, your relationships, or what you would have wanted. They just follow a formula. The people you love most may end up with less than you intended, or nothing at all. A Wheaton, IL will and trust lawyer can help you take control of what happens to your family before that decision
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5 Mistakes FSBO Sellers Make Before They Even List
Many homeowners choose to sell their property without hiring a realtor. Sometimes they already have a buyer in mind. Sometimes they want to avoid paying a commission. Sometimes they simply believe they can handle the process themselves.
Selling a home without a realtor can be successful, but many For Sale By Owner (FSBO) transactions encounter problems before the property is ever listed.
Here are five common mistakes that can create unnecessary headaches later in the transaction.
1. Pricing the Property Based Solely on Zillow
Online valuation tools can provide a useful starting point, but they are not appraisals.
Automated valuation
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The Cheapest Closing Lawyer Will Cost You More Later
When buying or selling a home, it is natural to look for ways to save money.
Real estate transactions are expensive. There are inspection costs, lender fees, appraisal fees, title charges, moving expenses, commissions, taxes, and closing costs. By the time someone gets to the attorney fee, it can feel like just another line item.
So some buyers and sellers choose their closing attorney based almost entirely on price.
That is understandable.
It can also be a mistake.
The cheapest closing lawyer may save you money upfront. But if the legal work is rushed, incomplete, or too high-volume, the problems
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Why Do Some Illinois Foreclosures Take Years to Complete?
Illinois foreclosures can take a long time, sometimes several years, to fully complete. This is not an accident. Illinois is a judicial foreclosure state, which means every foreclosure must go through the court system before a lender can take a home. That process involves court filings, required waiting periods, hearings, and opportunities for homeowners to respond and fight back. If you are a homeowner facing foreclosure in 2026, North Chicago foreclosure lawyers can help you make sense of where things stand and what comes next.
What Does It Mean That Illinois Is a Judicial Foreclosure State?
In a judicial foreclosure
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Does Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Save Your Home From Foreclosure?
Both Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy can slow down or stop a foreclosure, but they work very differently and offer very different outcomes for your home. Chapter 13 is generally the stronger option if keeping your home is your main goal. Chapter 7 can buy you time, but it does not fix the underlying mortgage problem. If you are behind on your mortgage and worried about losing your home in 2026, a Naperville, IL bankruptcy lawyer can help you figure out which path makes the most sense for your situation before it is too late.
How Does Bankruptcy Stop
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Your Realtor’s Lawyer May Be Convenient. But Are They Independent?
When buying or selling a home in the Chicago area, it is very common for a realtor to recommend a real estate attorney.
That recommendation may be helpful. Many realtors work with experienced attorneys and know who can keep a transaction organized. A referral can save time, reduce confusion, and give a buyer or seller a place to start.
But it should not be an automatic decision.
Your real estate attorney should be chosen because they are the right fit for you, not simply because their name was handed to you during the transaction.
A Realtor Recommendation Can Be Helpful
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Why Closing Dates Get Postponed in Chicagoland Real Estate Sales
A closing date feels final when it is written into the real estate contract.
Unfortunately, anyone who has been through enough Chicagoland closings knows the truth: the closing date is often more like a target than a guarantee.
Most buyers and sellers assume that once the contract is signed, everyone simply works toward the closing date and the deal closes on time. Sometimes that happens. But in many residential real estate transactions, the closing date gets pushed back because one piece of the process is not ready.
That does not always mean the deal is falling apart. But it does
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FSBO Sellers: Finding a Buyer Is Not the Finish Line
FSBO Sellers: Finding a Buyer Is Not the Finish Line
For many FSBO sellers, the biggest concern is simple: finding a buyer.
That makes sense. If you are selling without a listing agent, you are likely thinking about pricing, photos, showings, online exposure, buyer interest, and whether someone will actually make an offer.
But once a buyer appears, many sellers make a dangerous assumption.
They assume the hard part is over.
In reality, finding the buyer is only the first major step. The transaction still has to make it from contract to closing. That is where many FSBO sellers run
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